Let it Snowball by Margot Johnson

Let it Snowball by Margot Johnson
Publisher: The Wild Rose Press
Genre: Romance, Holiday, Contemporary
Rating: 4 Stars
Reviewed by Astilbe

Divorced, empty nester Merilee is on a roll. Filled with scrumptious cookies and old-fashioned fun, her Christmas bus tours aim to add festive spirit to her hometown and new meaning to her lackluster life. Too bad her reserved driver slams the brakes on fun.

Widowed farmer Ross needs a little joy to combat his December blues. Behind the wheel, he wears a Santa suit but can’t muster a convincing ho-ho-ho. Too many memories block his road to happiness…until irrepressible Merilee sparks a snowstorm of unexpected feelings.

In two weeks of holiday tours, Ross might drive Merilee crazy…or will romance snowball inside their lonely hearts?

Christmas is the perfect time to fall in love.

Merilee’s character development was handled nicely. To be honest, I wasn’t a big fan of her behavior in the beginning due to how opinionated she was about how everyone should celebrate Christmas. Her love of that holiday was so strong that it was difficult for her to understand why someone else might feel depressed or lonely then. I did warm up to her once she began to think about the world from other people’s perspectives, though. As pushy as she sometimes was at first, I was pleased with how her attitude evolved over time. There is definitely something to be said for characters who learn from their mistakes!

I would have liked to see a bit more time spent on developing and resolving the conflicts in this novella. The storyline mentioned several of them so often in the earlier scenes that I was surprised by how quickly they were wrapped up later on. This was especially true for Merilee’s concerns that having a dour Santa on her tour might discourage her guests from recommending her services or returning for another tour. There was more space here to explore those themes, and I would have gone with a full five-star rating if the author had dove more deeply into them.

At first I was a little surprised by how long it took for the romantic subplot to show up, but that was exactly what these characters needed. Both Merilee and Ross had plenty of other things going on in their lives that needed to be balanced out with their growing interest in each other. I appreciated the slow burn of their relationship. It suited them well and left plenty of space to be explored further in the sequel after the final scene.

Let it Snowball was a heartwarming holiday read.